Good afternoon Ladies and Gentlemen. I am delighted to be here to participate in TIF’s 13th Annual Conference. The topics that we will focus on today – Convergence and Infotainment – are topics that are exercising all of our minds more and more.
Today’s event will allow us all – policy maker, regulator, industry, and the media – to assess the Telecoms environment and focus on the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.
The line-up of my fellow speakers is second to none and I commend TIF for the value that I’m sure today’s conference will add to the shared understanding of our rapidly evolving telecoms industry.
Convergence
The information and telecommunications industry is one of the world’s fastest moving, most dynamic industries. Existing technologies are evolving rapidly and there seems to be no end to the new technologies that are being introduced.
The rapid evolution is not confined to the technologies used to provide communications services. We’re also witnessing other noticeable trends with devices and connections.
For example:
- The growing list of products that integrate voice, video and data is growing
- Connections between traditional products and the Internet are increasing
- And broadband is being speedily extended into homes and workplaces.
We have phones that take pictures and play music. Digital TV will allow us to call up statistics about players while we watch the All-Ireland final. And emails can include video clips.
We’re also witnessing the increased integration of the Internet into our physical world.
Advances are making it easier to collect, analyse and transmit more data. In short, the Internet is extending the reach of the information we are putting into it.
Challenges
What does all of this mean for me as Ireland’s Communications Minister and as a member of the Irish Government? The Cabinet is mindful of convergence at two levels: firstly at an economic level and secondly at the social and cultural level.
On the economic front, we are keen to promote competition, encourage innovation and maximise ICT’s contribution to economic growth.
From a social and cultural perspective, we’re conscious of the need to avoid a digital divide.
We also need to protect minors, consumers and privacy while also promoting cultural diversity and national identity.
These are all worthy goals. So what are the challenges that need to be overcome in order to achieve those goals? There are many. Let’s start with the key challenge: connectivity.
Broadband Infrastructure
If I can leave you with two key messages today, they are: Firstly, Convergence cannot happen without broadband. And I would add that you, the industry, are the key player in the deployment of broadband.
Yes, the Regulator has a role, as do I in the case of market failure. However, if we want Ireland to take full advantage of the opportunities that convergence will bring, it is you the industry that must lead the way.
The fast evolving nature of the industry that I mentioned earlier will drive the demand for broadband.
So will other initiatives within the policy arena. For example, the switch to DTT. Indeed, the proposals to amend the Television Without Frontiers Directive are an attempt to deal with broadcasting convergence.
DTT will free up valuable spectrum, which will whet the appetite for more innovation, and in turn will drive the demand for more bandwidth.
In 2002, the Government recognised that we in Ireland were particularly challenged when it came to connectivity.
The prospect of convergence, as well as other economic and social concerns, highlighted the need for significant investment in infrastructure capable of supporting the delivery of rich services, applications and content.
Quite simply, industry’s inactivity on broadband left us with no option but to invest in what became the Metropolitan Area Networks programme.
The MANs programme is having a positive impact, in terms of the quality, price and choice of broadband. However, with some parts of the country still without a broadband service, I recently announced the initiation of a process to examine options for addressing this gap.
Solving the problem will not be easy, but I am confident that a workable and robust solution can be found and I expect to finalise proposals in this area shortly.
Any reference to the challenges of convergence would not be complete without touching on next generation networks. BT are leading the way with their deployment of a fibre backbone or “21st Century Network” (21CN). /…
Bandwidth-hungry services will drive the deployment of fibre as close to the user as possible where “Very Fast DSL” (VDSL) or fibre itself will be used for access.
Summary
To sum up then: although the full challenges of convergence for business, regulation and policy making are still emerging, the key challenge today is to deploy the broadband that convergence requires.
We all have our parts to play in broadband deployment. My focus is the maintenance of a legal, regulatory, trading and social environment, which provides you, the industry, with the highest prospect of growth and profitability.
A growing and profitable sector, which is delivering on strategic national objectives in ICT development and usage, is a prerequisite to positioning Ireland as a globally competitive information and knowledge society.
I look forward to working with you in addressing the challenges as they emerge.
Thank You.
ENDS